Woman says boxing champ Jermain Taylor threatened to kill children LITTLE ROCK — A Little Rock woman said Tuesday that boxer Jermain Taylor threatened to shoot her three small children, and that she knocked the gun away after the cursing middleweight — once called a role model by the city's mayor — put the weapon to her husband's head. Toya Smith, 40, said she and her family, including children ages 5, 3, and 1, were watching the city's Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade Monday when Taylor, 36, produced his ch...

Part of Ohio interstate to be shut for days after collapse CINCINNATI (AP) — A collapsed overpass covered southbound lanes of Interstate 75 with hundreds of tons of concrete and steel Tuesday, following a construction accident that killed a worker and injured a truck driver. The Ohio Department of Transportation said the busy artery through downtown Cincinnati will be closed at least two to three days. "The debris needs to be removed and we have to determine if there is damage to the pavement," spokes...

Van Horn, Hogrefe named Dover Citizens of the YearDOVER — The Dover Chamber of Commerce named two Citizens of the Year during its annual banquet on Saturday. Anne Hogrefe and Scott Van Horn were given the honor for their efforts to make the community of Dover a better place to live. Hogrefe was presented the award by Katie Villalobos, who said Hogrefe never hesitated to help out regardless of what was required of her. “Hogrefe took a week of vacation from work to help with Ozark Memories Day,...

AGFC increases non-resident licenses for hunting, fishingLITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) recently approved an increase in several non-resident hunting and fishing licenses. The Non-Resident Annual Fishing License will be $50, up from $40. The Non-Resident 3-Day Trip Fishing License will increase from $11 to $16, and the Non-Resident 7-Day Trip Fishing License will increase from $17 to $25. The Non-Resident Annual All Game license will be increased from $300 to $350. The No...

Obituary: Devyaniben ShahDevyaniben K. Shah, 84, of Russellville died Monday, Jan. 19, 2015, at Russellville Nursing and Rehab in Russellville. The daughter of Harishchandra and Taramati Sawardekar, she was born Aug. 17, 1930, in Goa, India. She was a loving mother, grandmother “Dadi,” kind, caring, selfless and very humble. She was a member of the Hindu faith and was preceded in death by her husband, Kumudchandra Bhogilal Shah; her parents; one brother; one sister; s...

Obituary: Charles TuckerPINE BLUFF — On Jan. 17, 2015, God welcomed Charles Clifford Tucker, 95, to his heavenly home. A longtime resident of Pine Bluff, he died at River Valley Assisted Living in Russellville. The son of Charles Corbett and Myrtle Strahan Tucker, he was raised in Cleveland County, where he graduated from Rison High School. He then attended Henderson State College for two years before serving as an army medic during World War II. He received a bronze...

Obituary: Linda FitznerCLARKSVILLE — Mrs. Linda Louise Fitzner, 62, of Ozone passed away in Fort Smith, Jan. 17, 2015. She was born in Kingston to Millage and Velma (Oxford) Bowen. She is preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Omer and Gene Bowen; and sister, Colene Tate. She is survived by her husband, Gerald Fitzner of Ozone; son, Dewayne Edgmon of Elkins; daughter, Leisa and Toby Foster of Springdale; stepson, Jerry and Trish Fitzner of Pea Ridge; stepdaught...

Obituary: Ranny AnrakRanny Anrak, 39, of Russellville died Jan. 9, 2015, at Baptist Health Medical Center in Little Rock of respiratory failure. He was born March 15, 1975, in Ailuk, Marshall Islands, and is the son of the late Daina Langbel and Johnson Anrak. He is a graduate of the Tech Institute and served a two year mission in Guam for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He worked for Mahle in Russellville and numerous government jobs. He is survi...

Volunteers strive to increase millage, honor gymDOVER — The Dover Board of Education heard a lengthy report from volunteers working for the passing of a millage increase in a special election to support the proposed Dover Middle School building project. Committee chairs Carla Bowden and Megan Musgrove presented updates on promotional T-shirts and brochures designed by the high school EAST (Environmental and Spatial Technologies) program, and a website they said is in the final stages of pre...

Gibbons to serve state boardLITTLE ROCK — A local attorney was elected to serve on the 2015 Arkansas Prosecuting Attorneys Association (APAA) Board of Directors. Prosecuting Attorney David Gibbons represents the Fifth Judicial Circuit, which includes Pope, Johnson and Franklin counties. Gibbons was selected to be a board member on the 2015 Board of Directors. The APAA Board of Directors is composed of seven elected prosecuting attorneys — board president, vice president,...

Russellville volunteer honoredKatherine “Kitty” Carswell of Russellville received the 2014 Arkansas Outstanding Certified Long-Term Care Volunteer Ombudsman Royce Haigwood Award. The award was announced in late 2014 and honors only one volunteer for the state. Carswell has visited nursing home residents as a certified volunteer ombudsman since 2010. “I just really like it,” Carswell said. “Being in a wheelchair, I really understand the needs of the people, and I want to ma...

News Briefs (Jan. 20, 2015)Rachel’s Challenge at PJHS Wednesday Pottsville School District would like to invite the community to attend a presentation of Rachel’s Challenge at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the Pottsville Junior High School. Rachel’s Challenge is a national non-profit organization that exists to equip and inspire individuals to replace acts of violence, bullying and negativity with acts of respect, kindness and compassion. Rachel’s Challenge is based on the lif...

2 arrested after missing man's body found in Little RockLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Authorities in Pulaski County have arrested two men in connection with the kidnapping and death of a 20-year-old man. Sheriff's office officials say the body of Cody McCann was discovered on Saturday near a power line in southern Pulaski County. Taken into custody was 28-year-old Evatt Theodore "Ted" Warner III. Officials say he was arrested Saturday and charged with capital murder and kidnapping. Also taken into custo...

Little Rock-area school districts lose 838 students in yearLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Enrollment in two of Pulaski County's three traditional school districts each dropped by hundreds of students between the 2013-14 school year and the current one. The Little Rock School District, the state's largest district, show that the Oct. 1 student count was 24,800, down 349 students from the previous year, district enrollment figures indicate. The state's third-largest system, the Pulaski County Special School D...

Arkansas faces challenge in trying to revamp Medicaid planLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Supporters of Arkansas' "private option" agree that keeping the state's compromise Medicaid expansion alive is going to require overhauling a program providing coverage to thousands of residents. The challenge is coming up with changes that can win the support of federal officials and skeptical lawmakers on both sides of the debate. The program's fate is expected to become clearer this week, with Republican Gov. Asa Hu...

New Arkansas governor speaks to 2,800 at anti-abortion rallyLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Sunday that he would like to see the U.S. Supreme Court overturn its 1973 decision that legalized abortion, but that he wouldn't ask Arkansas legislators to pass a strict law for justices to consider. Hutchinson told about 2,800 people gathered at an anti-abortion rally at the Capitol that he was hopeful that the Roe vs. Wade decision would one day be reversed. "I pray for the day that the sanc...

Improvements to Interstate 30 to require lane closureLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas transportation officials say improvements to Interstate 30 will require a lane closure in Saline County. The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department says crews will be improving the driving surface on Interstate 30. The work will require closing the westbound outside lane between mile markers 108 and 109, west of Benton. The lane closure will occur on Tuesday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., weath...

Ribbon cutting set for student center at Ozarka CollegeMELBOURNE, Ark. (AP) - A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned at Ozarka College for the school's new student services center on the Melbourne campus. The Ozarka College Board of Trustees has issued about $2.9 million in revenue bonds to finance construction of the facility that is supported by sales tax revenue from the citizens of Melbourne. The ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for Jan. 29. A groundbreaking ceremony was held in September 20...

Newport police say man shot to death, suspect in custodyNEWPORT, Ark. (AP) - Police in Newport say one man was shot to death outside his home and a suspect is in custody. Lt. Patrick Weatherford says in a news release that officers responding to reports of a shooting Sunday afternoon found 50-year-old Ronald Edwin Everett with a gunshot wound to his chest. Weatherford says Everett died later at a local hospital. Weatherford said it appears Everett was shot as he approached a car that had stopped in...

Mountainburg man suspected of 2 stabbing deaths, takes lifeFORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) - Police in Fort Smith say a Mountainburg man suspected of stabbing his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend to death, then killed himself with an apparent drug overdose. A news release from Sgt. Daniel Grubbs says police found 23-year-old Bobbie Jo Wilhite stabbed to death Sunday in an apartment on the city's north side and 27-year-old Rocky Dee Prater Jr. in the apartment with stab wounds. Police say Prater later died of...